A progressive take on BC issues

A progressive take on BC issues

Education

The BC government’s September budget update included significant new funding for K-12 education as expected in light of last year’s Supreme Court of Canada ruling. This was vital after years of chronic underfunding by the previous government. The new funding to restore class size and composition provisions illegally stripped from teachers’ contracts means that thousands… View Article

Earlier this week, the BC government appointed an Advisory Forum on Poverty Reduction to provide expertise and assistance to the Minster of Social Development and Poverty Reduction in the development of a comprehensive poverty reduction strategy for BC. The 27 people named to the Forum represent communities across the province and bring diverse skills, perspectives… View Article

The August 8, 2017 announcement that the new NDP government was fulfilling a promise to end tuition fees for Adult Basic Education students and English Language Learners in time for September classes is welcome indeed. This is the first step in undoing an educational wrong. The BC Liberals announced in late 2014 that “adults with… View Article

What’s the purpose of digging a hole and then re-filling it halfway or even all the way 15 years later? Child and youth services providers and families are asking this question as they review the “new” dollars for child-serving ministries in the 2017 BC budget. Over the last 15 years provincial child-serving ministries, school districts,… View Article

Thankfully for their residents, not every province handles adult education like BC where the government has eroded access to high-school level courses for adults while other provinces are making basic education more accessible. In mid January, the Province of Ontario announced policy changes to make adult education more affordable and to ensure that low and… View Article

My recent analysis of BC’s education funding crisis made some waves, travelling far and wide in the media and becoming one of our most-read papers of the year at CCPA-BC. Not surprisingly, it also drew critical responses that reflect some persistent myths about the funding crisis. (You can hear my conversation [at 1:41:20] with CBC’s… View Article

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We deliver timely, progressive commentary on issues that affect British Columbians, including the economy, poverty, inequality, climate change, provincial budgets, taxes, public services, employment and much more.